Super (stupid) hero (boyfriend)
by meltinglacier
Summary: Mai could honestly say that she had no idea how it had happened, but somehow she had become a sidekick to a dork that put on a Halloween mask to fight crime. Superhero AU.
1. Chapter 1

**Super (stupid) hero (boyfriend)**

**Summary:** Mai could honestly say that she had no idea how it had happened, but somehow she had become a sidekick to a dork that put on a Halloween mask to fight crime. Superhero AU.

**Pairings:** Maiko, Sukka.

**Warnings:** None.

**A/N:** This quickly became more humorous than I had planned, and the dialogue practically wrote itself. Seriously. Anyway, the Zuko in this fic has fewer issues, due to Daddy not burning his face because he dared to care about human lives.

* * *

**1.**

"You're bleeding all over my carpet."

"Hi to you too, Mai."

"It's going to stain."

"Yes, clearly that is what I'm worried about right now."

"Shut up. Take off your shirt."

He raised his eyebrows exaggeratedly. "If you insist."

"Shut up," she said. Then she kissed him.

"Mmph – ! …Mm. Mmm. Ow."

"Right. Injuries first, kissing later."

"There'll be kissing later?"

"Duh."

"Oh, okay. Wow."

"Shut up. Idiot."

**.**

**.**

**.**

"How, exactly, did this happen?" Mai asked tersely as she wrapped bandages around Zuko's arm. "And by that I mean, 'How were you injured, why do you have swords strapped to your back, and why did you decide it would be a good idea to climb through my bedroom window instead of going to the hospital like a normal person?'"

"I think – ouch, careful – I think that's the most you've said at one time."

"Having an economy with one's words is not a bad thing. And don't change the subject. I'm sure you realize it looks a bit suspicious, what with the mysterious injuries and the giant swords."

"They're hardly _giant_."

"Not the point. Answer the question."

"That's kind of a long story."

"We have time," she said flatly.

**.**

**.**

**.**

"So you're a superhero."

"Um, was that supposed to be a question? I can't really tell."

"You're the Blue Spirit."

He perked up. "You've heard of me?"

"I've seen your wanted poster."

"Oh. Wait, I have a wanted poster?"

"Focus."

"Right." He fidgeted. Mai cleaned her nails with a knife. Judging by his facial expression, he was both impressed and intimidated. That was the point. "So, I'm the Blue Spirit."

"By all means, let's just repeat things that should have been said a long time ago."

"The way you're spinning that knife is making me really nervous."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Um."

**.**

**.**

**.**

After a long conversation about honesty and Zuko's tendency to run around the city with a mask, Mai leaned back and asked, "So what are we going to do?"

"We?"

"Of course. You can't just expect me to wait at home like a good little girlfriend."

"G-girlfriend?"

She leveled a look of annoyance but felt a fission of uncertainty all the same. "Problem?"

His face softened. "Nope. Not at all."

"Good."

**.**

**.**

**.**

"I'll need a what now?"

"A costume," Zuko repeated. "Or at least a mask."

Mai didn't have superpowers but she did have a rather alarmingly large collection of pointy objects that she knew how to throw with deadly accuracy. She had demonstrated this to Zuko by pinning him to the wall with a few knives that she had thrown lightning-fast. This had quashed his initial protests about her safety, and Mai found that he was quite enthusiastic about introducing her to the superhero club. According to him, first on the list was costume shopping. He was having a bit of trouble convincing Mai to wear one though.

"I don't need one," she insisted.

"It'll protect your family from villains coming after them as revenge against you."

She raised an eyebrow at him.

"Okay," Zuko conceded, "I get your point, but what about Tom-Tom?"

Her forehead furrowed minutely. "Fine."

**.**

**.**

**.**

Okay, so the whole costume thing wasn't so bad. Zuko had said that he would take her to a designer that catered specifically to superheroes and whose discretion was assured.

Mai hadn't been expecting to meet a diminutive woman with enough personality to fill a room though. By the end of her consultation, she had agreed to both a mask and a costume. She wasn't quite sure how it had happened.

"Dah-ling, red is your color! So beautiful, like a rose! Dangerous and sharp! Exquisitely deadly! The fabric, what kind of fabric? Fireproof, obviously, but what else? And pockets! Lots of pockets for pointy objects! Then we get to the mask. Something simple, elegant. Something that says, 'I can cut off all of your fingers if you cross me.' Too understated?" she asked when Mai blinked. "Not violent enough? Work with me, dah-ling! Work with me!"

With that, Mai was led away, trying not to let her bewilderment show. From the grin on Zuko's face, she hadn't fully succeeded.

**.**

**.**

**.**

The costume… wasn't so bad.

Okay, fine. It was actually quite good.

There was no spandex in sight, and the clothing didn't look too flashy or ridiculous. In fact, Mai thought there was a certain class to it. She was relieved to learn that unlike the heroines in the comic books that she had read, her costume wasn't revealing.

The fabric was red and black, and apparently fireproof, though Mai wasn't planning on testing that anytime soon. There were flowing sleeves that slipped over her hands – perfect for hiding all manner of pointy objects – while her pants billowed as well. Built into the clothing were an assortment of hidden pockets, straps, and holsters. There was even a wrist mechanism that could shoot out small arrows.

The mask was black (a plus, as far as Mai was concerned) and covered the upper half of her face. Delicately etched into it were roses with thorny stems that twisted around the bottom.

"Wow. You look…nice."

"I feel ridiculous," she complained without any heat. She actually felt a bit powerful. Safe, certainly. She was armed to the teeth, and she felt dangerous.

"Well, at least you won't be bored."

"Yes, there is that." Mai showed the hint of a smile. "Just remember, I'm not your sidekick."

* * *

**A/N:** Edna Mode cameo!


	2. Chapter 2

**2.**

"So, Blue, who's the sidekick?"

Mai sighed. She was being condescended to by someone who called himself 'Boomerang Guy.'

"I'm not his sidekick."

"Uh-huh," he said, clearly disbelieving.

Zuko had wanted to show her around and introduce her to all of his superhero friends. First on the list was Boomerang Guy, otherwise known as 'Sokka.'

"So what's your superhero alias?"

She hadn't really thought about it. "I don't have one yet."

He brightened. "Cool. So does that mean that I can – ?"

"No," Zuko said quickly. "No, you cannot give her a name. Trust me," he said to Mai, "it's better this way."

Mai believed him. Anyone who went around using 'Boomerang Guy' as their alias was not going to be naming her.

"For that matter, don't let him draw you either; he's not so artistic."

"Hey! I am so! Poetry is art, and I happen to be good at that, thank you very much."

"He is good at making haikus," Zuko allowed.

Sokka nodded in satisfaction. For Mai's part, she just watched their interactions with interest. Zuko wasn't usually this outgoing, preferring to stand around than risk his social awkwardness rise to the front. She wondered if it was Sokka or if it was the mask that was giving him such confidence.

"Hey, don't worry about it. You'll get a name eventually."

"I'm not in it for the spandex or the code names. I'm here to make sure that this idiot," she jerked her thumb at Zuko, "doesn't get himself killed."

"We don't wear spandex," both Sokka and Zuko objected in unison. Sokka continued with, "Aw, that's sweet," and wiggled his eyebrows at Zuko. "This one's a keeper; take it from someone who knows."

Mai was willing to bet that Zuko was blushing under his mask, but he muttered, "Because you've got such a way with the ladies."

"I've got Suki, don't I? I have to be doing something right."

"Suki's his girlfriend. She's part of the Kyoshi team," Zuko explained to her.

"She's the greatest," Sokka said with a dreamy sigh.

"He gets stupid-silly when he talks about her, as you can see."

"Like you're one to talk. Isn't she the girl that you said was so pretty that the first time you saw her, you walked into a door?"

"I remember that," said Mai. She was certain that Zuko had to be tomato-red under that mask.

"It was a glass door," he weakly defended himself.

Her heart really wasn't used to handling all the squishy emotions that it was feeling.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Mai spent the rest of the afternoon getting introduced to several more superheroes that Zuko associated with. The Blue Spirit didn't personally partner with many of the other heroes, but he was knowledgeable about most of them.

Mai was reminded of why she didn't like to spend a lot of time around other people. Sure, the people had been nice, but it was just too exhausting sometimes. She had grown up in what felt like near-solitude. What little affection she had received had usually been from Zuko or Ty Lee. Azula tended to lean more towards the 'set fire to things that upset you' side of the comfort spectrum, which was a whole other issue.

Later, they walked around a park aimlessly as a way to de-stress and talked about the recent developments that their lives had taken. Zuko explained to her some more superhero etiquette and other such tidbits of information.

("There's a reason why Edna didn't give you a cape."

Not that Mai minded this; she had been ready to put her foot down on the cape issue, but it had turned out that she hadn't needed to. Edna Mode had been in complete agreement concerning that particular style.

"After what happened to Fire Nation Man… Well, anyway, we just don't wear capes."

Mai didn't inquire any further.)

"Hmm, what else is there to say? Oh, another hero you should be aware of is the Painted Lady. She's Boomerang Guy's sister. Um, we don't exactly get along. Just so you know."

"What did you do?"

"Why do you assume_ I_ did something?"

His indignant look was almost good enough. Almost.

She raised an eyebrow. He coughed.

"Yes, well, there was a…misunderstanding. Involving her mother's betrothal necklace. It's important to her. I may have, um, taken it."

She raised her other eyebrow.

"I gave it back! I thought she was harboring a fugitive," he said defensively. "And it turned out that she was. Sort of. She didn't know. And she did end up turning Hama in."

"Hama, as in, the serial killer in the Boiling Rock who can control blood? That Hama?"

"That's the one," he confirmed. "Wait, how do you know about that?"

She gave him a flat look. "The Warden's my uncle."

"Right. Hey, that could come in handy. Any chance you could get more info from him?"

"Of course."

"Having a sidekick is shaping up to be pretty useful," he mused.

"You don't have a sidekick," she reminded him.

"Right, sorry."

**.**

**.**

**.**

In spite of whatever issues existed between Zuko and the Painted Lady, he and Boomerang Guy – Sokka, whatever – were still friendly, as odd as it seemed.

Mai was invited to hang out with them and usually ended up going, although she declined any shopping sprees that Sokka tried to drag her on. Zuko tolerated them, but Mai refused to subject herself to that if she could avoid it.

Sometimes she couldn't avoid it though, and wound up traversing the mall with an enthusiastic Sokka and a longsuffering Zuko. It was almost like shopping with Ty Lee and Azula actually. Zuko was as good a buffer for Sokka's energy as Azula usually was, though Mai knew that he would be offended on principle if he knew that she was comparing him to his sister.

After one such event, she and Zuko leisurely walked around while Sokka left to spend time with his girlfriend.

"You never did tell me how you learned to use those things," she said, nodding at his dao swords. She had never claimed to be good at casual conversation and she didn't see the point of inane small talk.

"Piandao taught me."

"The semi-hermit?"

"That's the one. I actually met Boomerang Guy while I was training under him. We were both students of his at the same time."

"I don't know how you can call him that and keep a straight face."

"He's not the most serious figure, but he's dependable. I'd trust him to have my back." High praise indeed. She would have to keep that in mind. She nodded in acceptance and dropped the subject._ She_ certainly couldn't say anything about eccentric friends.

"Why don't you use fire when you're the Blue Spirit? You're skilled with those swords, but your fire is a part of you and it could give you an edge."

She was mildly curious; sharp, pointy objects were somewhat of a specialty of hers, as Zuko had learned by now. She had explained to him about how her grandma had been a firm believer in a girl being able to protect herself. She wondered why she hadn't told him earlier; now they could talk weapons. Yes, this superhero thing had its perks.

"Not using it gives me an edge too. It's a bit of unexpected protection for me should I get into trouble. Also," here his eyes went serious, "just because I can make fire doesn't mean that I should. It's a huge responsibility to be able to create fire at will and it's not something that I should abuse."

Mai dipped her head in agreement, then laced her fingers with his.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Naturally, there was a learning curve to being a superhero. Mai didn't mind. It was _interesting_. There were always people to fight and places to sneak.

Even being taught to fight crime was interesting; Zuko preferred hands-on lessons, which more often than not involved Mai chasing some petty criminal through the streets while Zuko trailed behind them and observed. After, he would go over things that she could improve on and give her some tips and tricks.

He also taught her some hand to hand, insisting that Mai have an extra way to defend herself. Those lessons went rather well; she couldn't spend as much time around Ty Lee (and, to a lesser extent, Azula) as she did without picking up a thing or two about fighting. Mai could hold her own, but she would always prefer fighting from a distance via all manner of knives.

Not to mention the sparring lessons that had them panting and sweating with exertion. It was even better when one of them ended up pinned to the floor. Needless to say, Mai managed to get in a few make out sessions among her superhero training.

Yes, Mai didn't mind learning how to fight at all.

Running around all over the city did take its toll on her, but she learned to balance schoolwork with crime fighting. She was more tired these days, but she couldn't remember ever feeling so alive.

**.**

**.**

**.**

"Baddie coming up quick. Ready for this, Mai?"

"Would it be too much of a cliché to say that I was born ready?"

"Probably."

"Then yes."

"Okay, here we go."

**.**

**.**

**.**

"Good job, Mai. Maybe next time you could work on dialing down the lethal intent?"

"If you insist."

"I do."

"Fine."

**.**

**.**

**.**

"Better this time. But he still peed himself."

"Not my fault he has a weak bladder."

"Mai..."

"I get it. I'll be…nicer."

And on it went.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** I'm so sorry about the wait, you guys. I'll try to be quicker with the next chapter.

* * *

**3.**

"Hiya, Mai!" Ty Lee chirped. "Ready for that history test?"

Mai was, in fact, _not_ ready. She had been busy this past week, mostly with what she had taken to describing as 'cleanup duty.' Strange rock formations had been cropping up in random places in the city. Lines scored into the ground, piles of rubble, that sort of thing. Mai was betting someone with…abilities had moved into town, someone who was confident enough in themselves not to worry about cleaning up. There hadn't been an increase in crime – if anything, the city had seen a decrease, but it was just inconvenient and odd.

She grunted in response.

"Ah, come on, don't be that way. Learning is an adventure and tests are part of that!"

"Joy. School."

Her mutter caused Ty Lee to glance at her, but despite her acerbic tone, Mai really wasn't that troubled. Ty Lee sensed this (probably by way of the ever-present 'auras' that she always talked about) and just grinned.

"Aw, Mai," she said as she slung an arm around her neck, "Don't be a mope on this beautiful day."

Mai huffed and removed the arm. "Your incessant cheerfulness is making me nauseous."

"Just the way it should be; all is right in the world! The sun is shining, the birds are singing, and Mai is being a grump!"

Mai tried to flick her ear, but Ty Lee's torso swerved away in an arc that made Mai's back ache just by looking at it. Benefits of being a cheerleader, Mai supposed. Ty Lee had plenty of opportunities to hone her flexibility and acrobatics now, instead of doing something like running away to the circus, like she had threatened to do when she was nine. _There is no one more suited to being a cheerleader than her, _she thought as Ty Lee dodged out of the way of three pens that Mai had thrown at her in rapid succession.

"Missed me," Ty Lee crowed. She stuck her tongue out.

"Real mature," Mai said, but she was smiling. She knew that Ty Lee was distracting her on purpose, but she didn't mind.

Mai was usually ambivalent about school, considering it boring but necessary, but now that she had a boyfriend and a side job (though admittedly one without pay and stable hours), she found herself longing for it to end.

Mai was startled out of her thoughts by Ty Lee tugging on her arm. "We're going to be late! Come on, onward to learning!"

"Yeah, yeah, let's get this over with."

She did well enough on the test, and pretended to be paying attention in her other classes. Really, she just thought about throwing knives as she took notes. That kept her entertained enough as she hunched over in the appearance of dutiful studying. She was pretty sure that the teachers had marked her as suitably diligent.

She somehow made it to lunch, where Azula was lounging at their usual table and Ty Lee was all but bouncing in her seat. Mai guessed that there was some particularly interesting gossip going around, judging by Azula's self-satisfied expression.

Mai sat down gracefully, always aware of the stares. They were ever-present; Azula was the reigning queen of the school, with Mai and Ty Lee as her two lieutenants.

Yes, lieutenants. Because there was no question that Azula ruled through fear as much as charisma. People wanted to be her, be with her…and be on her good side, or else she could make their lives very difficult.

Ty Lee shamelessly lapped up the attention, oblivious – perhaps deliberately so – to any negativity directed at her as a result. Besides, any cruelty towards her was dealt with swiftly and without mercy by Azula and Mai.

"Okay, I'll bite. What happened?"

"_Well_, you'll never guess who was caught…"

She let Ty Lee's chatter and Azula's smirking comments wash over her. This was normal. This was familiar.

**.**

**.**

**.**

When Mai had been younger, her parents had forgotten to pick her up from school so many times that she had eventually just started taking the bus home instead. That arrangement continued to this day, even as they faithfully chauffeured Tom-Tom to play dates and such.

Okay, she knew that was a bit of an exaggeration, but they were definitely relieved not to have to remember all of their parental duties. But in any case, it was much easier for everyone involved this way – unless it started raining, as it did today.

By the time Mai got home, it was pouring and she really wasn't in the best of moods. She took a petty satisfaction in tracking mud behind her when she entered the house.

"I'm home," she announced to no one as she dripped on her mother's carefully cleaned floor.

She received no answer, which wasn't a surprise, and found her mother at the kitchen table, reading a newspaper. A few words caught Mai's eye_: 'The Blue Sprit: Hero or Menace?_' and _'Is His New Sidekick Trouble?'_

_Not_ _a_ _sidekick_, was her instinctive thought, though it lacked venom.

"You're home." Her mother favored her with a distant smile.

_Brilliant observation, Sherlock. _

Mai blinked placidly.

"Oh! You've brought mud into the house," she said, vaguely distressed. "All over the floors."

"Sorry."

"Nevermind, dear."

Mai felt a stab of annoyance at her mother's magnanimous air, but shoved it down. A good thing too, as she wasn't able to stop herself from frowningat her next words. "Remember, your father and I are going out tonight, so you'll be watching Tom-Tom."

"What if I had plans?"

"Do you?" her mother asked absently, already returning to her newspaper.

"Just fighting crime by tracking down smugglers who work for the Phoenix King."

Even naming the most feared crime lord in the city didn't get any reaction other than a, "That's lovely, dear. Now remember to get Tom-Tom to bed on time."

"Yes, mother."

**.**

**.**

**.**

Tom-Tom had plopped himself in front of the TV and was watching cartoons avidly. Mai thought that she could almost see a string of drool trailing down his chin. She grabbed some textbooks and went to the kitchen, close enough that she could keep an eye on him, but not so close that she would have to interact with him.

She tried to study, but eventually gave it up as a lost cause and called Ty Lee instead, who spent most of her call being very sympathetic to Mai's plight. She was no stranger to family problems, particularly issues pertaining to siblings. Neither was Azula, for that matter, but Mai tended to stay away from topics like that when talking to her. It was a bit awkward being friends with two people who had as many conflicts as Zuko and Azula did. Mai tried not to take sides, and that included phoning Azula to complain about her little brother.

She fed Tom-Tom and got him ready for bed, ignoring his affectionate babbling. "Go to bed, kid. No, I'm not tucking you in."

He turned big eyes on her and let his lower lip quiver a little. To Mai's horror his eyes started gathering a bit of sheen to them.

She knew she was being played.

She tucked him in anyway.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Mai started to gain a reputation.

When a villain had referred to her as 'the Blue Spirit's new sidekick,' she expressed her displeasure in creative, pointy ways. From then on, she was described as "the Blue Spirit's _scary _new sidekick."

There were whispers now, things like, "It's not him you need to be worried about. It's _her_."

Mai was inordinately pleased about this. Zuko had just chuckled when she told him about the rumors and said, "Well, it's true."

The public was getting curious, considering that the Blue Spirit had always worked alone, and so there was much speculation regarding her role. She still didn't have a superhero alias, which was just fine, as the public decided to name her. It meant that she didn't have to come up with her own, and fortunately, it wasn't really something that she objected to.

She had glanced down at the paper one morning and saw a blurry picture of her and the Blue Spirit, looking intimidating as always, gracing the front page. Skimming through the article, she saw the sentence: _"Inside sources within the superhero community are calling her Thorn."_

_What inside sources?_ Mai had wondered. And no one called her that anyway. Or, at least, they hadn't before. Now, a quick Google search revealed to her that the name was quickly gaining popularity.

Thorn. At least it wasn't something like 'Boomerang Guy.'

Expressing this sentiment to Zuko had gotten her an amused snort.

"Well, given the rose motif… You know, it actually does work," Zuko mused, reading the article "You are both prickly and beautiful," he said unthinkingly, then turned red.

A bit pink herself, Mai cut off his flustered attempts at backtracking with, "It's an acceptable name. I thought they would have gone with something like 'Gloomy Girl.'"

Zuko's startled laughter filled the room. "I like it. Gloomy Girl. Hey, you know, it's actually kind of catchy…"

"Don't you dare," she warned him. That only made Zuko laugh harder.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Life went on. Growing recognition from the superhero committee made it easier for her to make her way around the city at night, but she was tired come morning, which led to bags under her eyes. Mai had never cared overly-much about her appearance though. Ty Lee did comment on them, but Mai hadn't been spending as much time hanging out with her and Azula.

Between Ty Lee's cheerleading practice and their own demanding schedules, they hadn't been able to hang out in a while. Azula was busy planning world domination, or whatever it was that she spent her spare time doing. Mai's recent unavailability was explained away as a natural consequence of having a boyfriend.

Ty Lee had squealed when Mai revealed that she had a boyfriend, and then squealed even more at _who_ her boyfriend was.

Azula had grimaced a bit – likely at the thought of her brother in a relationship – but congratulated her all the same. Her exact words were something along the lines of, "It's about time" with a comment about their hopelessness and general ineptitude thrown in. Ty Lee had giggled behind her hand while Mai pretended to ignore them. Just like old times.

In any case, boyfriend or no boyfriend, exams were coming up, and it was understood that Mai's performance was going to be outstanding, as usual. Azula was also under immense pressure from her father to do well, while rather the opposite was true for Zuko. That didn't mean that he wasn't _trying_ to do well, but his father wouldn't acknowledge it. Ty Lee was in a similar situation to him. With the number of sisters that she had, her parents barely knew one report card from the other, so she didn't have much incentive beyond her own to do well.

When they were in elementary school, Ty Lee had taken advantage of this by not trying very hard, but Mai knew that she hated being considered 'the dumb one,' which was what most people tended to label her when confronted with her bubbliness and propensity for the color pink. This wasn't helped by the fact that she was friends with two of the top students in the school.

In short, everyone was busy preparing for exams. Just because Mai didn't care much for school didn't mean that her parents didn't, so she still tried to do well, even though she didn't care much for their opinions either. Staying in their good graces allowed her autonomy, but the minute they suspected that she wasn't reflecting the best possible light on the family, she would find herself the centre of attention, and not the good kind.

Besides, Mai had long since outgrown wanting their attention.

Anyway, even with all that, she still had to mask up and fight crime, though sometimes Zuko went out on his own when Mai had to study or babysit Tom-Tom. Usually, he returned unscathed, since he knew that Mai would give him the third degree if he came back injured.

Sometimes, though…sometimes there were interesting exceptions.

**.**

**.**

**.**

"Ouch. Be more careful."

"You big baby. They're just a few scratches."

"Scratches made from rocks!"

"Pebbles."

"They still hurt," he said sullenly. There were a few minutes of unintelligible grumbling while Mai dabbed at his cuts, perhaps a bit gentler than before. "I mean, there are rules," Zuko suddenly said. "What hero decides that their alias is going to include the word 'bandit?' That sounds villainous, doesn't it?"

"That sounds like you need a lesson in not jumping to conclusions."

"I know, I know, I just assumed…"

"You know what they say about assumptions."

"Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up."

"I am," she said, completely straight-faced.

"Appearances are deceiving," he defended himself.

"Sorry, I'm still not over the fact that you got your ass handed to you by a little blind girl."

"I _told_ you, she uses her powers in a way that she might as well have sight."

"Mhm."

"Well if you think you could do better…"

"No thanks," she drawled. "Unlike you, I do have some common sense."

Zuko grinned at her. "Clearly not enough to keep you safe at home while your heroic boyfriend roams the city and saves the day."

She smirked back at him. "Clearly."

* * *

**A/N:** As a side note, I did have Mai's superhero name picked out before I saw the cover of the new Mai comic, but it seems even more fitting now.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:** So, um, obviously I _wasn't_ quicker with this chapter. Sorry, but now that exams are over for me, I should have more time to write.

* * *

**4.**

Not much changed after Zuko's encounter with the Blind Bandit.

He came out of it relatively unscathed, with not much more than a bruised ego to show for his fight with her. Mai suspected that she had been going easy on him, given all the damage that someone who was able to control the earth _could_ have inflicted. Zuko probably knew this too, which accounted for some of his grumbling.

They were lucky that the Blind Bandit had decided to become a superhero, Mai thought absently as she surveyed the damage done to the ground in that ill-thought out confrontation. At least now she was cleaning up after herself sometimes. Without the debris from her fights left scattered around, her presence in the city was quite helpful. Besides, between studying for exams and moonlighting as a superhero, Mai really didn't have that much time to clean up after someone who was supposed to be on her side.

To further complicate matters, one of her father's business contacts had recently moved here from China, and he was taking every opportunity to show him around, making new connections and strengthening old ones. That meant that he and Mother were off at parties and social gatherings every other evening, leaving Mai to watch Tom-Tom.

Mai couldn't find it in herself to be too annoyed. Life was…good.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Zuko was curled up on one side of her couch reading a book while she stretched out on the other side to do homework. It was a comfortable silence, and every so often her feet nudged against his, but she knew better than to distract him. Judging by his hunched shoulders and the way he had drawn his knees up, he was absorbed in his book.

She glanced at the title. No wonder. It was the first book in the _Avatar _trilogy – his favorite series. His favorite character was this scared prince who had to regain his honor. Mai suspected that he could relate a little too well, but she didn't bring that up.

Zuko had of course read all three of the books multiple times, but a movie was coming out soon and he wanted to reread them, ostensibly to refresh his memory. He did not have very high expectations for the movie (whitewashing was one of his concerns), but he remained cautiously optimistic.

Mai knew that when it came out, they would go to see it. A few years ago, they had gone to see a play adaption called _The Boy in the Iceberg_ with Azula and Ty Lee, and everyone had agreed that while the effects were decent, it wasn't a good play.

This time though, it would be like a date. Fighting crime together was all well and good, as was eating supper in cozy little diners, but going to see a movie was something that couples typically did.

They weren't typical in any sense of the word, but it was good to have a little bit of normalcy every once in a while, hence their current conditions. It was also a good choice for a date, because the movie was sure to get Zuko riled up, whether for better or for worse.

Mai liked seeing him passionate about these books; the way his eyes lit up and the slightest tinges of pink that colored his cheeks…

What? Mai was allowed to find him cute. He was her boyfriend now.

Boyfriend.

Just the word made her feel stupidly giddy.

And they were going to go on a date. Ugh, Mai was sounding more and more like a lovesick puppy.

She flopped her head back against the couch, as dramatic a gesture as she would make.

Zuko peered at her from over his book. "Problem?"

She considered. "No, actually. Not so much."

**.**

**.**

**.**

Saturday morning found Mai staring at the phone, wondering how to tell Zuko what her uncle had told her. She sighed and dialed his number. So much for a quiet weekend.

When he picked up, she didn't mince words. "There's been an escape from the Boiling Rock. My uncle just called me. There'll be an announcement on the evening news, but I figure we should get a head start on the searching."

"I thought the Boiling Rock was inescapable. Your uncle's perfect record and all that."

"Uh-huh. He's pissed."

"So who was it?"

"Hama."

"Shit."

"Yeah, it's going to be tough, but I'm ready to start searching if you are."

"It's not that. Well, yes, but we're going to have to do something first."

The apprehension in his voice was palpable. Mai had a feeling she knew why. She asked anyway. "And that is?"

"We're going to have to tell the Painted Lady."

**.**

**.**

**.**

"Well, that wasn't so bad."

Mai stopped wringing out her hair to give Zuko a sardonic stare. The Painted Lady hadn't meant to catch her in the deluge of water she had instinctively directed at Zuko, but she had been caught in the crossfire.

"It could have been worse," he offered. "I thought that went rather well, actually."

"You could have delivered the news a little more tactfully," was all she said in reply.

He shrugged. "She prefers honesty."

Mai gave his soaked appearance a onceover. "Clearly."

"Nah, she's just not exactly pleased that I was the one that gave her the heads up, because then she thinks she owes me."

"By that logic, wouldn't she owe _me_?"

"She might react better to that," he mused. "I'll let her know. From a distance. _After_ this Hama business is taken care of."

**.**

**.**

**.**

As it turned out, Mai and Zuko didn't have to do all that much when it came to containing Hama.

Sure, they spent the weekend searching for her, but it was the Painted Lady who faced her down in some kind of showdown, part two. Fitting, Mai supposed.

Although the Painted Lady had acted swiftly and incapacitated the threat in a way that ensured that no one else was added to Hama's sick collection of human puppets, there was a bit of angst on her part as a result. She was reportedly distraught that she had to use her powers in a manner that she found morally repulsive, _again_.

Mai didn't begrudge her the bit of time off that she took to recover; she and Zuko just doubled up on patrols for a few days, though she had to stop when her parents informed her that she would have to watch Tom-Tom while they went to a party celebrating a deal that was successfully finalized.

**.**

**.**

**.**

For all that Mai groused, babysitting Tom-Tom was not an intolerable chore (not that she would tell her parents that). He was, in fact, a good-tempered kid and he really wasn't that much trouble to look after.

Truth be told, Mai did prefer her two-year-old brother's company to that of her parents', if only because he had no expectations of her other than taking care of his basic needs and occasionally obliging him in picking him up. He didn't engage in inane conversation and his babble was easily ignored.

Really, if she didn't have other things to do, it wouldn't be a bad way to spend an evening. She was aware of how pathetic all of that sounded, but considering her social circle, she thought that she was rather well-adjusted.

She glanced at her little brother, who was currently occupied with clapping at the TV. He then reached out at the screen and shoved his chubby little finger to where footage was being shown of Mai – or rather, Thorn – flinging knives about.

She scrutinized herself. That didn't look like her, did it? Her clothing was entirely different and the mask obscured most of her face anyway. Even her hairstyle was changed when she was Thorn.

Most of the time, her hair was pulled up into a distinctive style, with two tight buns up on either side of her head. This hairstyle included two strips of hair hanging loose, which Tom-Tom frequently took the opportunity to yank on.

For some reason, she didn't entirely mind when he did, though she would often growl about spoiled brats. It was, however, a different matter when a criminal attempted to gain a hold on her hair, which was why when she was Thorn she had it pulled into a tight braid that had a strap of spiked leather plaited into it. Several criminals had already learned a lesson about yanking on her hair; they had paid for their attempts with bloody palms and swift retaliation.

She gripped Tom-Tom under his armpits and lifted him up to eye level.

"And just how did you know about _that_?" she asked him, jerking her head toward the TV.

He blinked at her.

"Right," she said to herself. "I'm talking to a two-year-old and expecting an answer." Talking to herself probably wasn't that much better, but it either that or continuing a conversation with a toddler.

Said toddler smiled guilelessly at her, then tugged on her hair, hard.

"Ouch." She gently disentangled his fingers from her hair and placed him back on the floor. "Brat. You don't fool me. Go…watch TV or something."

He toddled off and Mai turned back to her textbooks with a relieved sigh. Yeah, it said something that Mai would rather do her trigonometry homework than interact with her little brother. Mai checked up on Tom-Tom every-so-often, and every time he was engrossed with whatever colorful, vaguely-educational show was on.

Eventually, for whatever reason, he ended up clinging to her leg like a little leech and grinning up at her. "How are you even in this family?"

Mai had often contemplated taking him to the doctor, because clearly something was wrong with him if he could grow up in this household and still retain such a cheerful disposition.

But then she remembered that he was only two and not a disappointment. She remembered that _she_ was the one with the issues and then she cut that line of thought right off. It would do her no good.

Tom-Tom popped his thumb in his mouth and gurgled.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Sokka had been busy talking down his sister from the whole Hama ordeal, and hadn't met the Blind Bandit yet. He had been aware of her, sure, but he had never met her face to face. Zuko only ever referred to her as _that blind girl_, in a way that suggested that he was still sore about losing to her. He also tended to change the subject quickly, Mai noted with amusement. Consequently, Sokka hadn't known who she was until he met her, where he proceeded to have several small freak-outs. Apparently, the Blind Bandit was big in China's underground meta-human wrestling championships, and Sokka had a buddy who sent him shaky videos via the internet.

So. Sokka was a bit of a fanboy.

After he composed himself, he introduced the Blind Bandit to 'The Boulder,' another meta-wrestler turned superhero, who happened to have similar powers to her – although anyone could tell that the more talented of the two was the Blind Bandit.

Mai had met The Boulder before, when Zuko was familiarizing her with the superhero community. He was a bit dim, and had a tendency to refer to himself in the third person, but his heart was in the right place.

It was interesting to watch the evolution of their relationship. The Boulder, who had baulked at following orders from a little blind girl, quickly came to respect her after she beat him down into the ground several times. In no time at all, the duo was running around, moving earth and kicking bad-guy ass.

Sokka was ecstatic that his two favorite fighters had become friends, and, even better, were willing to spend time with him. He had nearly had fits when they invited him to fight crime with them. For all that the Blind Bandit teased Sokka about his lack of powers, she had shown that she did respect his fighting prowess. The Blind Bandit and The Boulder's interactions also had the effect of prompting Sokka to bemoan his general lack of a sidekick. He was met with a dearth of sympathy.

Around this time, people would usually start making comments about Mai's own perceived status as a sidekick, but the Blind Bandit didn't say anything of the kind. That was when Mai decided that they were going to get along just fine.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: **I do have an excuse for being late with this chapter: I haven't had access to a computer, much less the internet, so. Sorry about that.

* * *

**5.**

This was not how Mai had imagined spending her life.

Yes, she was getting attached a bit quickly, imagining that she would be spending a significant portion of her life as Zuko's partner – in both superheroism and in everyday life – and making tentative plans for that future. But, well, she had never felt so alive.

Before, when Mai had thought about her future, she always had vague impressions of a tedious day-to-day existence. This had only served to further her resolve to keep her life interesting, but she had never been able to think up a job accessible to her that she would enjoy doing. She hadn't thought that gallivanting around in a costume in order to stop crime would be one of her options, but here she was.

It might be a bit too early to say, but Mai felt that this was the kind of thing that she could see herself doing in the future.

**.**

**.**

**.**

In any case, Mai found herself hanging out with a bunch of superheroes in her spare time.

Sokka had the keys to a community centre where he had a poetry workshop. This month they were doing haiku battles; Mai had to listen to him talk about it enough that she was probably an expert by now.

The centre was a bit run down but there were no CCTV cameras. The owner couldn't afford them and they weren't really needed; there were never any break-ins, partly because the owner was a generally well-liked guy and partly because there was absolutely nothing of value to steal in there anyway. In short, it was a perfect place for a group of superheroes to meet up during their free time.

It had started off as a way to study for their exams away from their respective parents (Mai and Zuko carefully didn't ask Sokka about his dad, but they got the impression that he was away a lot). The Painted Lady and Suki showed up a few times, though things were still awkward between the Painted Lady and Zuko. She did snipe at him, but things were at least civil between the two of them and she didn't try to almost-drown him in a sudden torrent of water. Baby steps.

Mai was used to maintaining the peace between testy individuals, so she didn't mind that much, especially since the Painted Lady owed her for tipping her off to Hama's escape. Azula's scheming ways had rubbed off on her; it was always prudent to collect favors and blackmail.

Then the Blind Bandit started dropping by at random times. She was a bit loud and abrasive, but Mai's experiences with friendship had lent themselves well to withstanding her brusque manner. When they were fighting crime, she was a force to behold; firm movements and a solid stance as she moved earth around. When it came to social interactions, it seemed like she wasn't used to having friends and was compensating with her bravado. She had good ideas though and she was the one that started up Game Nights on their downtime.

Mai learned that the Blind Bandit liked card games of all kinds, though she needed someone to tell her which cards she had. Mai could tell that it grated on her to be so dependent on another, but none of them would take advantage of her – not that they could; the Blind Bandit could tell when anyone was lying, which incidentally translated into always being able to call a bluff, even Zuko's, though his mask gave him an advantage as it completely covered his face. Mai quickly learned not to play against her, unless she wanted to be soundly defeated.

June, a bounty hunter that Zuko had introduced to her, sometimes stopped by too. She and the Blind Bandit got along famously. For that matter, the Painted Lady wasn't so bad either once she loosened up, and the three of them wiped the floor when they teamed up on Game Night.

Sokka was by far the worst player – Suki was pretty good and The Boulder didn't usually have tells, for all that his face was always comically exaggerated – but he took it all in good humor. He couldn't bluff in card games to save his life, but put a beard and some stage makeup on him and he was suddenly the most outrageous of characters.

'Wang Fire' had taken down his fair share of baddies and urban legends were cropping up around the persona. For that matter, Sapphire Fire was subject to her own rumors and was quickly gaining a reputation as someone not to mess with, despite her agreeable personality and 'heavily pregnant' figure.

It turned out that the Painted Lady was pretty good at the undercover thing herself. She was a quick thinker and she remembered the insane cover stories that Sokka came up with (particularly memorable was the day that she was 'June Pippinpaddleopsicopolis' to Sokka's 'Bonzu Pippinpaddleopsicopolis, the Third'). She and Sokka made a good team since they knew each other so well, and they were fine with showing a select group of superheroes their faces in order to make undercover operations run more smoothly.

The Blind Bandit, on the other hand, guarded her secret identity fiercely, never once taking off her mask, but that was understandable since she had more than once hinted at how overprotective her parents were. She was young, but she was one of the most stubborn people that Mai had ever met and she wasn't sure that there was anyone who could actually control her.

**.**

**.**

**.**

"I still don't know why you insist on wearing that thing," Mai said to Zuko one night as they made a circuit of the neighborhoods that they were currently looking after. She made a vague gesture at his mask.

"You gave it to me. It's symbolic."

"It's sentimental."

"There's nothing wrong with that."

Mai cursed her fair skin as she silently willed herself not to blush.

"When I gave it to you, I was thinking that you would wear it out to a Halloween party or something, not that you would wear it out…superheroing."

"Fighting crime."

"It's a bit more than fighting crime, isn't it? It's steeped in cultural expectations and spandex and codes of conduct."

"I don't wear spandex," was Zuko's offended protest.

"You might as well be," she muttered, then blushed. Urgh, what was wrong with her?

Zuko bravely soldiered through what Mai imagined was his own self-conscious blush under the mask. It mollified her to think that he was at least as discomfited as she was. "I'll have you know that these clothes are made out of special materials and specifically designed for me."

She didn't point out that they also accentuated his frame quite nicely. She figured that she had embarrassed herself enough already.

**.**

**.**

**.**

About a month before Mai had joined up with him to fight crime, Zuko had a run in with a criminal called Zhao and had immediately disliked his arrogance and condescending attitude. Finding out that he was working for the Phoenix King was just a bonus as far as Zuko was concerned. When they got a tip that a shipment of cocaine was being prepared for transport, Zuko was eager to investigate since Zhao's domain was drugs.

Sneaking into the warehouse was easy enough, all things considered – there was a guard that patrolled, but if there was one thing that Mai had learned since starting this whole venture, it was that people didn't tend to ever look up. Ariel entrances happened to be one of Zuko's specialties; he flitted from rooftop to rooftop like he was born for it and Mai wasn't that bad at it herself.

They let themselves in through a skylight, confident that the lack of light outside would cover them. No one so much as glanced up. Observing the activity down below, it became quickly apparent that Zhao wasn't there; the operation wasn't up to his stringent standards of organization.

Zuko nodded at her, the Blue Sprit mask leering in the darkness as she slipped away was strangely comforting. Balancing on the beams that connected at the ceiling, Mai maneuvered herself until she had her back to the wall and had wedged her body between two steel beams in the shadows. It would be difficult to see her here and the beams would provide her with some cover if anyone thought to shoot at her.

It was the best she could do at the moment and all she needed to do was provide cover for Zuko. She liked being long-range; they worked well together. Zuko handled the close combat and Mai provided cover for him by picking off whoever she could.

Her eyesight was as exceptional as her aim (that was to say, _very_), so she immediately saw when Zuko gave her the signal. She let six bo-shuriken fly. Usually she would try to incapacitate without injuring, an unusual choice for someone whose primary weapons were blades, but her first volley was all about causing the most disorder that she could.

Instead of pinning people's clothes to the nearest surface, she aimed for hands, thighs, and feet. She made sure not to hit anything vital and the blades didn't sink too far in, but they would hurt like hell and that was the point.

The air was filled with curses mixed with cries of pain as Zuko jumped down. The soft 'snick' of blades being drawn wasn't enough warning before he was upon them. For a moment, Mai let herself enjoy the sight of Zuko twisting and turning while his swords flashed through the air. It said something about her that one of the things that attracted her to a guy was his ability to use blades. Back to work. Focus.

Mai draw in a breath to center herself, then let loose another barrage of bo-shuriken on her exhale. She repeated the pattern several times more, hitting each of her targets with precision.

Guns were drawn and Mai's lips curled in distaste before she threw a few more bo-shuriken. She allowed herself a tiny smirk of satisfaction when they embedded themselves in the thugs' hands. Swearing, they dropped their guns and whirled around, trying to find her. _Amateurs_, she sighed, as Zuko took advantage of their distraction and smashed the hilt of his swords into their temples. They dropped like a ton of bricks.

Between her shuriken and Zuko's dao swords, the rest were easily taken care of.

"I suppose we should call the police and get them to deal with this," Mai said, poking at one of the unconscious men with her foot.

**.**

**.**

**.**

Mai had taken to reading comic books in her free time. Not that she had a lot of it these days, but there was only so much studying and patrolling that she could take, and she found a certain irony in reading them.

Zuko peered over her shoulder at the brightly colored action scenes. "So what's with the comic books?"

"It's research," she defended.

"Now who's the dork?"

"Still you," she said, staring pointedly at the _Avatar_ books on his shelf and the various limited-edition memorabilia scattered throughout the room.

"You love it."

They both blushed when they realized what he said. Mai cleared her throat. "Yeah, I guess I do."

Zuko's eyes widened before fluttering closed as he pulled her in for a kiss.

**.**

**.**

**.**

"You want to call it a night?" Zuko asked looking from the manhole at their feet to her. She could almost feel his expectant stare through her mask. He wanted to know if she was going to attend Chan's annual almost-the-end-of-the-school-year party that night. If she was, he would go with her. If not, they would spend hours following the Phoenix King's smugglers through the sewers.

Truthfully, Mai had barely even thought about it. She could already imagine how the party would play out. Zuko would stand around and be socially awkward; it was like his default setting. Ruon-Jian would try to flirt with her and Zuko would get subtly territorial. Well, now that they were dating, there would probably be nothing subtle about it and then there would be a fight which would cause her to get annoyed.

In short, it wasn't worth it. And why would she want to go to a boring party when she could spend the night chasing bad guys through the sewers? There was no contest, really. It would probably be best if they skipped the party altogether. She would have to make excuses to Azula, but she was experienced with that.

She gestured to the manhole. "Lead on, oh mysterious superhero."

**.**

**.**

**.**

When she went back to school on Monday, Mai learned that Chan's place had caught fire. Talking to Ty Lee yielded no overt results, but it was obvious to Mai who was behind it.

"There was only a little bit of fire," Ty Lee said dismissively. "Like, a teeny amount. Barely anything."

"So what did Chan do to Azula?"

"Well, they were flirting and then they made out, but then he called her a 'freak' and stuff."

Mai winced. Yeah, that would do it. "Wait. Did you say_ they_ were flirting? As in, Azula was flirting too, and he flirted back?"

"Yup. She took my advice."

"And what advice was that?" Mai had a feeling that she knew the answer.

"Oh, just to laugh at everything he said, even if it wasn't funny."

"So what went wrong?"

"I think she started acting like herself again," Ty Lee said blithely. "Oh! No, wait, that sounds bad. What I meant was, she has a…strong personality that tends to scare people, you know?"

Only Ty Lee could toe the line between sweetness and being so earnestly offensive.

"I get what you mean," she said before Ty Lee could babble excuses. "I do know."

"_Anyway_, how was your weekend? Did anything exciting happen?"

Mai thought about running and dodging and throwing knives and bruises that came from being slammed into unforgiving cement walls.

"No, no really."


End file.
